Hundreds of community activists, parents, students and union leaders are expected to converge Wednesday morning at Chicago Public Schools' headquarters to pressure the school board to reject a reform package that includes closing or overhauling 17 struggling schools.
School closing meetings historically have drawn protesters en masse to the cramped school board conference room on the fifth floor of CPS' downtown offices. But this vote will be closely watched because it is the first time Mayor Rahm Emanuel's school board and CPS leadership team will take such actions as they try to transform the city's public school system.